Binte Aziza MH

Binte Aziza MH

It is hard to believe that almost forty years ago, RDM Maar Hala began her breeding career and through her progeny, directly impacted the direction and focus of the Rancho Bulakenyo breeding program. Maar Hala’s great-granddaughter, Binte Aziza MH, over her lifetime, would exert a similar impact, ushering a new generation of horses at Rancho Bulakenyo. An elegant and exquisite grey mare, Binte Aziza MH was sired by Richter MH, a son of El Halimaar (*Ansata Ibn Halima x RDM Maar Hala) and out of the *Farazdac daughter, Fasarra (*Farazdac x *Masarra). As the “earthquake” in Richter’s name implies, a more auspicious beginning could not have been made to herald the arrival of a mare who, through her progeny and especially, her sons, would significantly influence an already established and proven breeding program, whose world-wide fame rested upon the almost magical cross of the much-loved Babson Egyptian mare, Maar-Ree, with *Ansata Ibn Halima. Binte Aziza’s sire, Richter MH, a United States and Canada Top Ten Futurity Colt, previously owned by Count Federico Zichy-Thyssen of Haras El Atalaya in Argentina and now owned by Sheikh Khaled Ahmed Bagedo of Al Khaled Farm in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, remains a very special horse for Jody Cruz, as he is the first horse that Jody bred, shortly after taking the breeding program over from his father, Dr. Felino Cruz. 

On the maternal side of her pedigree, Binte Aziza MH, affectionately called “JoJo”, was out of a beautiful Abenhetep (*Ibn Hafiza x Omnia) daughter named BintAzizaPrincess, whom Jody had unexpectedly found while visiting Azali Arabians, owned by Bill and Georgene Raisner in Temecula, California.

BintAzizaPrincess (Abenhetep x Aziza Princess)

Jody still remembers the moment when he first saw BintAzizaPrincess, "I was visiting an Egyptian breeder friend in Temecula. She offered to take me to another Egyptian breeder, a small family-owned and run program based on their first SE mare, Aziza Princess." Jody remembers spotting a most spectacular grey filly, "I literally looked across the row of corrals and saw a very special grey filly and asked, who is THAT? In that fraction of a moment, time seemed to come to a stop, as he focused all of his attention on an outrageous little filly, still at her dam's side. Jody immediately recognized that this filly may be just the horse he had been looking for, that is, a transitional horse who had the genetic potential to build upon the foundation already established at Rancho Bulakenyo, while transitioning the programforward, to the next chapter. Despite his best efforts to convince the Raisners to sell her, they did not want to sell and Jody, unfazed by their response, was determined that one day, he would own “Sara”, her barn name inspired by Sara “Sally” Stokke, who along with her husband owned Abenhetep. Jody never wavered in his desire to purchase the filly and a few years later, was able to lease and ultimately purchase, BintAzizaPrincess and incorporate her in his program. Binte Aziza MH, her second foal and a very pretty grey filly, was born at the end of April 1998, captivating her breeder with an abundance of charm, just like her mother did, when Jody saw her for the first time. What is really interesting about the pedigree for Binte Aziza MH, is the presence of not only TheEgyptianPrince but also, RDM Maar Hala, who was known as a producer of influential stallions, having produced horses who went on to be equally significant for Rancho Bulakenyo and for other breeders too, like El Halimaar, Halim El Mansour, ET Crown Prince, Prince Ibn Shaikh, Maar Ibn Ali, Maar Ibn Amaal and Haliluyah MH. I don’t know of many horses who combine genetically a dam of stallions with a broodmare sire, to the degree that TheEgyptianPrince and RDM Maar Hala have been in the breed and for me, it better explains the consistency for which Binte Aziza MH has produced breeding horse quality within the Rancho Bulakenyo program.

In looking at Binte Aziza MH, while separated by many, many years from Ibn Rabdan, one does witness his influence, that is, close-coupled horses, framed by strong and smooth toplines and harmonious bodies influenced by circular lines. Ibn Rabdan remains one of the more important stallions in Egypt of his day, an important influence on present-day horses. Binte Aziza MH carries at least twenty-eight lines to Ibn Rabdan, eleven of the crosses through her sire, Richter MH and seventeen lines through her dam, BintAzizaPrincess, the mare that captivated Jody Cruz, back in 1991, when he visited Azali Arabians. 

Kaliph MH

Fast-forward ten years, when the first of her amazing sons started to arrive. Binte Aziza MH, a Kuhaylan strain mare, crossed beautifully with the Kuhaylan strain Imperial Al Kamar, producing a trio of uniquely pure-in-the-strain Kuhaylan stallions: Kaliph MH, now owned by Jaleen Hacklander of Hadaya Arabian Stud and proving to be a pivotal sire within her breeding program, 

Bashar Al Kamar MH

Bashar Al Kamar MH who has matured into a vital breeding stallion and replacement for his sire, Imperial Al Kamar and Nour Al Kamar MH,

Nour Al Kamar MH

who sired a beautiful filly named Amira Kahila MH (a double BintAzizaPrincess-bred mare, as she is out of Bint Romanaa MH) purchased by Jamie Zissis for her Rosehaven Ranch LLP. In a country which is dominated by Dahman and Saqlawi strain stallions, choosing to breed within the Kuhaylan strain is unique and not a choice that is commonly practiced by other straight Egyptian breeders. Jody Cruz made a bold choice in breeding within the Kuhaylan strain of horses, to produce individuals who like their sire and dam, would also continue to influence not only within the confines of the Rancho Bulakenyo program, but all over the world. 

Princess Aziza MH

When Binte Aziza MH was bred to *Lebinon Al Shaqab she produced three full sisters: Princess Aziza MH, who was sold to Al Shaqab in Qatar, Amaya Princess RAF and Johara Princess RAF, both of whom are owned by Jamie Zissis of Rosehaven Ranch LLP, to incorporate in her program, which focuses on the bloodline of the mare, 9 Tamria.  Their full brother, Aziz Ibn Lebinon MH, was retained by Rancho Bulakenyo, for use as a future breeding stallion.  Binte Aziza MH was also bred to *Hadban Al Shaqab producing the colt, Aziz Ibn Hadban MH, who is also retained by Ranch Bulakenyo as a future breeding prospect.  How important is Binte Aziza MH to Rancho Bulakenyo? Of the seven stallions that up until recently, filled the breeding stallion roster at Rancho Bulakenyo, six of those horses trace back to BintAzizaPrincess through her daughter, Binte Aziza MH. The seventh stallion was the late Imperial Al Kamar, who exerted an historic impact, all over the world. Of the mares that make up the breeding herd at Rancho Bulakenyo, a quarter of the mares carry the blood of BintAzizaPrincess and the ones that don’t, will be bred to one of Binte Aziza’s sons. Because the consistency of her sons are so outrageously excellent, one can easily forget that Binte Aziza also produced a daughter in 2013 named Bint Binte Aziza MH, a full sister to Kaliph, Bashar and Nour, as she was also sired by Imperial Al Kamar. It will be exciting to watch from the sidelines as she begins her breeding career. 

As stated at the beginning of this article, RDM Maar Hala defined her influential impact through the legacy that her sons created, as breeding stallions not only within the Rancho Bulakenyo program but all over the world. It is because of the Maar Hala sons that the breeding program of Rancho Bulakenyo is globally recognized for strong female lines which become influential through the siring strength of sons and Binte Aziza MH was no exception, she was proof of it. The memory of this prolific mare remains vibrant and relevant with the birth of every foal sired by Bashar, Kaliph and Nour and insures the survival of a most celebrated and revered family of horses.

Anchor Hill Hamla

In the late forties, the American breeder, Daniel Gainey, impressed with Henry Babson's Egyptian horses, wanted to incorporate Egyptian lines into his program and so, he  purchased the Egyptian mare *Mamdouha, who was in foal to the stallion Enzahi. The mare *Gamila was the foal that was born and at twelve years old, *Gamila was sold to the Atkinson’s of Anchor Hill Ranch. Bred to Anchor Hill’s straight Babson Egyptian stallion, Hadbah, she produced the extraordinary foundation mare, Anchor Hill Hamla. She was a lovely, old-world type of mare, curvey, substantially built with a strong top line, wide chest and big hips.  She was not exotic or extreme in her look but she possessed chiseled features and a dry, refined face. However, it was through her progeny, that Anchor Hill Hamla would prove to be most influential, as compared to her full sisters: Anchor Hill Bint Gamila, Anchor Hill Hamila and Anchor Hill Hadga. Subsequently owned by Glorieta Ranch and bred to the newer Egyptian blood like *Talal, Ansata Abu Nazeer and *Ansata Ibn Halima, as well as the older Egyptian horses, like the stallion, Char Echo. 

Adaweya

Many years ago, I became fascinated with the stallion Antar and tried to learn as much as I could about him because, I understood that his greatest legacy would be felt from the dam side of the pedigree. In other words, he was a broodmare sire. I started to focus on mares like Shahrzada, Farasha and Kamar. However, there was one mare who produced exceedingly well with Antar, as compared to the others. Her name was Abla, a Nazeer daughter out of the Bint Farida daughter, Helwa, who produced with such amazing consistency, beautiful mares like Nagat, Ein, Somaia, Rashika, Eman and...Adaweya. What is the difference in the Abla offspring, as compared to the offspring of Farasha, Shahrzada or Kamar? I believe the influence of Farida creates a smoother-built horse, with a strong topline, a deep hip, powerful shoulders and a higher set neck, while remaining incredibly elegant. The Director of the Egyptian Agricultural Organization in the 1980’s was the late Dr. Ibrahim Zaghloul. When asked which mares he believed would have the greatest impact within the EAO breeding program, he named five mares, of which, Adaweya, was one of his five choices. He had a high regard for her level of quality and for the consistency of her progeny, “Adaweya has beautiful conformation, including a level topline, pretty head, and refined bone. From Abla, she inherited that unmistakably classic elegance and exquisite type associated with the Egyptian Arabian, as well as a deep shoulder and high set neck. Her foals are in turn the embodiment of these characteristics."

Adaweya produced 10 foals for the EAO: 5 mares and 5 colts:

MARES
(1) Ikbal (Seef)
(2) Enayah (Nawaf)
(3) Bint Adaweya (Akhtal)
(4) Adalat (Ameer)
(5) Onwah (Ameer)
STALLIONS
(1) Ibn Adaweya (Akhtal)
(2) Adawy (Ikhnatoon)
(3) Mohab (Ikhnatoon)
(4) Omayr (Ameer)
(5) Fouad (Shamsan)

Adaweya produced her last foal in 1989, the stallion Fouad, by the Shaarawi son, Shamsan. I am not sure how many horses Fouad has sired. I know only of one, the bay mare Al Zebara Al Shaqab, out of the Gad Allah daughter, Tebrah. She in turn, was bred to the Russian-bred stallion, Borovik, to produce the race mare, Asrar Al Ourouba. While not a straight Egyptian, I found it interesting that even with bloodlines far removed from the EAO breeding program, the influence of Antar, through his daughter Adaweya, so many generations later, continues to exert an influence from the dam side of the pedigree.

***you can read the complete article, Looking for Adaweya, within The Arabian Breeders' Magazine, Volume I, Issue I***

The Story of Zareefa

The story of Zareefa very powerfully illustrates the rich and vibrant desert heritage of our foundation Egyptian horses. Cynthia Culbertson once said,

“What we can say about the Straight Egyptian Arabian, very reliably, is that they are so close to that desert source, the only way one could get closer is with a desert bred that stayed in the homeland.” 

 

Bint el Bahreyn

In 1910, Bint el Bahreyn foaled a Jamil filly, whom Lady Anne Blunt named Dalal Al Hamra. Lady Anne Blunt was delighted with this filly and had recorded that she had "a beautiful, gazelle-like head". Dalal Al Hamra was bred to a desert-bred Abeyyan stallion named Saadoun, whom Lady Anne Blunt had purchased from Shaikh Mishari Ibn Sa'dun of the Muntafiq in 1911. Like Jamil, she brought this stallion to Sheykh Obeyd Stud to use in her program. From the union of Saadoun with Dalal Al Hamra, was born Durra, a 1917 mare, who when bred to Kazmeen, gave the world of straight Egyptian breeding the mare Zareefa, the dam of El Sareei (by Shahloul). 

Zareefa (Kazmeen x Durra)

Almost half of Zareefa's ancestral elements are desert-bred horses, bred by different tribes of Bedouin people. We experience this wonder of the desert, as we stand in awe of the unique characteristics that nature, in all her wisdom, fashioned, to insure the survival of this horse in this arid and harsh environment.  

*Nabilahh

*Nabilahh was my favorite of the Farasha daughters, as I believe she was a very consistent producer of horses that in turn, created influential families. Gleannloch imported ten Anter daughters from Egypt. One of these ten Anter daughters was the mare, *Nabilahh. I can't think of a more powerful statement, that would underscore the importance of Anter and his daughter, *Nabilahh, than a foundation breeder like Gleannloch purchasing a large number of these horses.

Nabilahh produced 8 daughters:

• Bint Nabilahh in 1970
• Lohelia (*Morafic) in 1971
• Nagliah in 1972
• Neama in 1976
• AK Aliha (*Sakr) in 1977
• AK Bint Nabilahh (*Ibn Moniet El Nefous) in 1979
• AK Rafaayah (*Ibn Moniet El Nefous) in 1980
• Frabilahh (The Egyptian Prince) in 1984

It is interesting to point out the Bentwood-bred mare, AK Bint Nabilahh, who produced Classic Aisha by the Ruminaja Ali son, Alidaar (who provides an additional line to Farasha through his dam, Bint Magidaa) and SF Egyptian Dove, sired by ET Crown Prince. I have not seen this mare SF Egyptian Dove but I am curious to see how much she may resemble Maar Bilahh, as she has the line to Maar Hala through her sire, as well as a double does of *Nabilahh. SF Egyptian Dove has produced 3 mares that I know of: Ghazalat Bouznika by Imperial Imdal and two daughters by Imperial Mashhar (this stallion has Imperial Fanniya in his dam line, who was sired by *Faleh, a Farasha son and through the sire, Imperial Madheen, has an additional line to Farasha, through Galal and a line through Yosreia through Mohga): Mouniat Bouznika and Nabilah Bouznika, who should be somewhere around 10 years of age by now. The mare AK Rafaayah, was bred to the *Farazdac son, Shah el Sun to produce the mare N-Amora in 1992. This is an interesting mare to consider, as she carries Farasha on the top of her pedigree and the tail female. She in turn was bred to the predominantly Dahman stallion, Shaikh el Shamal, to produce the mare Nabilat el Sheruk, 10 years ago.

In the above paragraph, I mentioned the Alidaar-sired mare Classic Aisha and I must make mention of another Alidaar daughter out of The Egyptian Prince, Frabilahh, who produced Classic Farida. She has produced 2 sons by Ansata Hejazi and a son by the *Ibn El Mareekh son, Baahir.

The mare, Lohelia, has been prolific in her production of daughters, including the Bentwood mare, AK Ahliyeh, who produced a son by *Serag, Ahsen El Serag, owned by Al and Judi Parks of Al Abbasiyah International. While there have been horses produced with multiple lines to Farasha or Yosreia, it is interesting to find a stallion with Anter in the sire line, relatively close. AK Ahliyeh, when bred to Imperial Imdal, produced Kirmali in 1988. I saw this mare at the Newcomer's farm, Conestoga Run in Pennsylvania and was awestruck by what was for me,  a statuesque, elegant and wonderfully leggy, nice-moving mare. I was really surprised by Kirmali and her size, reminiscent of Sid Abouhom. She was shown with some success in hunter-under-saddle classes. Lohelia also produced AK Rasafah by Ansata Abbas Pasha, RXR Lia Moniet by AK El Zahra Moniet (Maarena blood here on the bottom) and Shahelia by Shaikh Al Badi.

Nagliah, bred twice to *Zaghloul, produced the stong-bodied Asmarr and Naheed, Taira by *Soufian, Buukura by Al Metrabbi, Nagiba by Ibn El Hassan and Bint Nagliah by Thee Desperado.

Neama was bred to The Minstril twice, to produce the full sisters: Najimah and Neena, as well as *Soufian, to produce the mare Qastal.

For me, the most outstanding mare of the Farasha family is Maar Bilahh, another Rancho Bulakenyo-bred horse, a daughter of El Halimaar, out of the *Nabilahh daughter by *Morafic, Bint Nabilahh. If Bint Nabilahh had only produced Maar Bilahh, she would have been forever remembered,however, she also produced two mares by Shaikh Al Badi: Ruminaja Nadia (she in turn produced Mashwara by Bay Halima and Sharifa Moniet by Moniet El Sharaf) and Ruminaja Nahjat.

 

An Audacious Cross

The cross of the Fame VF+ son, Audacious PS

Audacious PS (Fame VF+ x Hal Flirtatious)

with the QR Excel daughter, Satine IA

Satine IA (QR Excel x Psyches Euphoria)

has produced some of the most beautiful Varian Arabian horses, proving that something extraordinary, even magical, exists when you combine the bloodlines of these two particular individuals.

Several years ago, I stumbled onto Santino V's video on the Varian Arabians' website. I was impressed with the overall substance and scope of this young horse, who for being big, still possessed an abundance of breed type, grace and elegance. I couldn't keep my eyes off of Santino's beautifully-shaped neck, laid-back shoulder, deeper heart girth and well-muscled hind end, conveying great power. Santino also had a whisper of familiarity to him, which got me to really thinking about where I had seen him (or a horse like him) before. I didn't have to look very far for an answer, as  that feeling eventually led me to Desperado V and his son, Maclintlock V. So, naturally, I wanted to compare Santino's pedigree with Desperado's pedigree, looking for any commonality that would explain what I was seeing and feeling.  I found an answer almost immediately through  the Varian-bred Bay El Bey, who appears in the sire line of both horses, albeit through two different sources: the Jennie Walton-bred Bey Shah (through Fame VF+) and the Sheila Varian-bred Huckleberry Bey (in Desperado V). Through Fame VF's pedigree, we find more common ground through the Raffon daughter, Raffoleta-Rose, while on the dam side of Huckleberry Bey's pedigree, we also find Raffon, through his daughter, Taffona. So, in both horses we have this influence of Bay El Bey, combined with Raffon (Gazon x Vadraff). In Maclintlock's pedigree, we have an additional source of Bay El Bey, on the dam side (Marigold V), reinforced with the blood of Khemosabi, which we also find through the maternal side of Satine's pedigree. I am reminded that even though Audacious was not bred by Sheila Varian, he is so complementary to the Varian breeding program,  almost as if  Sheila had bred the horse!

Digging a little deeper within Santino's pedigree, I was also surprised to find several Egyptian lines, on both sides of the pedigree, with an overall percentage of Egyptian blood at approx 13 -14%. The Egyptian influence comes through the stallions Ibn Antar, Ruminaja Ali, Julep, Aswan and through multiple crosses of the Babson horses like *Fadl, *Bint Serra I and *Bint Bint Sabbah. Although the percentage of Egyptian blood is very small, it's still there and long ago genes are sometimes expressed mysteriously, like the curvey physique that hints (to me) of Ibn Rabdan's presence.

Santino V (Audacious PS x Satine IA)

Santino V, foaled in 2012 and now, an important breeding stallion for Varian Arabians, was not an isolated "home run hit out of the ballpark" for Sheila Varian. This cross, two years later,  would yield an equally beautiful full brother, in a completely different color, who was named The Seeker V, a gorgeous red chestnut colt. Like Santino he is breathtaking, impressively conformed and not lacking any of the unique characteristics we cherish as breed type. A Scottsdale Reserve Champion Colt, I think that The Seeker V has a bit more length to his neck, with a super fine throatlatch and extra length in the poll. His head has a pronounced jibbah and like his brother, his dramatic Arabian look is intensified through his large, black, expressive eyes. And, he has that tail carriage!

The Seeker V (Audacious PS x Satine IA)I

In 2013, right smack in the middle of the two beautiful colts, Serendipity V was foaled, the only mare born from the union of Audacious and Satine. She is black in color and a little different in her phenotype, as compared to her full brothers: Santino V and The Seeker V. She is refined and elegant, in a feminine way, and maybe her breed type is a little more subtle, as compared to the dramatic intensification of type found in her brothers. She has a beautiful neck, well-set, long and with a nice shape. She really looks Saklawi, with her longer legs, long neck, longer face and longer back. She has her sire's eyes, deep and black, radiating kindness. And, like her brothers, she has a beautiful, high tail carriage. What a formidable mare, to establish a breeding program.

Serendipity V (Audacious PS x Satine IA)

and finally, in 2015, the following year after the birth of The Seeker V, the last foal from this cross was produced, a grey colt named Safari V. If body color follows phenotype, it will be interesting to see how he matures and whether he will look like his sire, especially as his grey coat turns silvery white. Safari was gelded and will make a wonderful friend for his owner, as he also possesses a kind eye. She is really lucky.

Safari V (Audacious PS x Satine IA)

Satine IA was recently sold by Varian Arabians and on Thursday of last week, on Valentine's Day, I learned the tragic news that Audacious PS had died. I hesitated on writing this blog, as I don't want to be disrespectful or insensitive to the people who will be saddened over Audacious' death. If anything, it is important to speak about great horses because through the telling of their many stories, their life is celebrated and their significance in this world is spread even farther. Forget for a minute the many prizes Audacious has  won and the champion get he sired. While important statistics, they don't define the intangible treasure that lies deep within a horse. The fact that he made Sheila happy was a powerful thing that he did, because from that, came all the opportunities to make other people as happy as he made Sheila.

Rabdan El Azrak

Rabdan El Azrak was an 1897 stallion, a son of Dahman El Azrak and Rabda, bred by Prince Ahmad Pasha Kamal and gifted to Prince Mohamed Aly Tewfik. To say that this horse was significant in straight Egyptian breeding, would not fully convey the importance he has in our generation pool. Where would Egyptian breeding be without the impact of his son, Ibn Rabdan? How about Nazeer, who has Rabdan El Azrak present in his pedigree 3 times, through the mares Dalal Al Zarka and Nafaa El Kebira and the stallion, Samhan. Rabdan El Azrak's influence is essential as he has sired horses who are like "building blocks" within the genetic makeup of our legendary horses in SE breeding.

Saneiah Ezzain

Saneiah Ezzain is sired by Yaasoob Ezzain (NK Qaswarah x NK Nada) and out of Anwaar Ezzain, who is a Suror Ezzain daughter out of a critically important broodmare for Ezzain named NK Yasmin, who has exerted much influence within the breeding program. Usamah Alkazemi says, "Here is one of my cornerstones and one of the most blessed mares in term of production, NK Yasmin (Adnan X Helala). She is a half-sister to NK Hafid Jamil, Qaswarah's father, both out of Helala (Salaa El Dine x Ansata Gloriana)."
Like her dam, Saneiah is a classic representative of the Dahman strain and phenotypically exemplies the cherished characteristics we have come to associate with this strain. She is ultra-smooth and yet, strong bodied, a harmonious balance of both power and grace. In person, she is as charming as her dam, Anwaar, with a people-loving personality which is hard to resist.

Akira Zarif

Masada Bellesabah's progeny by *Fakher El Din were lovely. *Fakher el Din, a son of Moniet El Nefous by Nazeer was a sweet-natured stallion with a gentle disposition. Sara Loken, who imported him from Egypt said, "He passes on style, cadence, and balance - combined with physical beauty and one of the loveliest heads in our breed." Akira Zarif, Masada Bellesabah's 1982 daughter by *Fakher El Din was a snow-white beauty, one of the most beautiful mares I have ever met. She was an old world type, substantially built with lots of curves but also, a lot of grace and style. As dazzling as her sparkling white body was, it was her eyes that enchanted all who met her. They were like liquid pools of melted obsidian, huge, round, dark and deep, radiating warmth and kindness. Bill & Edna Weeks of Hatchie Hill Farm, produced two full sisters and a brother: Sabbah Din in 1979, Dahmah Din in 1980 and Khalif El Din in 1981. I find myself wishing that there were more of them.  

*Turfa

*Turfa, who was also known as “Tarfa”, was one of four Arabian horses chosen by King Ibn Sa'ud to be part of a coronation gift for George VI, along with four camels. George VI had originally intended for *Turfa to become his daughter's personal riding horse, however *Turfa, at four years of age, was a young, charismatic mare, responsive to the lightest of aids and maybe, required a rider whose level of expertise in the saddle was more highly developed than that of young princess Elizabeth, who would one day grow up to become Elizabeth II, today’s Queen of England. *Turfa was acquired by the secretary of the Arab Horse Society, Brigadier General William H. Anderson. The General admired the athletic potential of the young mare and made plans for her training and development, as a fine riding horse. A year before *Turfa arrived in England; the Germans had waged an air campaign against the British. For many years, we have believed that General Anderson had sent *Turfa to Canada, to the farm owned by the Prince of Wales. Sending *Turfa to Canada sounded reasonable, to insure her safety. However, looking back and reviewing the chronological printed trail of information for *Turfa does not support that the mare was ever sent to Canada and that actually, she remained in England, where Henry Babson met and purchased her. The most important fact that can support on which side of the Atlantic *Turfa and Henry Babson met, is found through Hilal (Uns-el-Wujood x Shejret Eddur), a British stallion. Turfa was in foal to him, producing a colt that was born in April, 1942. In order for the foal to be born at that time, *Turfa would have had to have been physically present in England (where the stallion was) in order to have been bred during April or May, 1941. The certificate of transfer between General Anderson and Henry Babson is dated November 10, 1941, approximately 6-to-7 months later, from the time she would have been bred. Of all her progeny, it would be her son, the stallion Ibn Fadl, who would become most influential. *Turfa’s legacy was felt more strongly through Ibn Fadl’s daughters, all of whom were outstanding producers. One only has to think of mares like Habbana, Raada, Fa-Deena, Imaar and Abah to understand how as a sire, he brought forward the influence of *Turfa, to make an impact consistently, from the mare side of the pedigree. 

***you can read the article, Portrait of a Desert Queen, in its entirety, within The Arabian Breeders' Magazine, Volume I, Issue III***

Ibn Adaweya

Ibn Adaweya, a chestnut stallion foaled in 1980, was originally named Lokman, however, his name was changed, to honor his mother. He was a full brother to *Bint Adaweya. He was purchased in partnership by Wegdan El Barbary of Shams El Asil and Khaled ben Laden of the Rabab Stud. Ibn Adaweya sired a bit differently from his brothers, Adawy, Mohab and Omayr, producing a higher percentage of sons, than daughters. Of the 14 horses I know, 9 were sons. With the exception of 2 sons, all of Ibn Adaweya's sons have sired progeny, insuring the survival of this family, from the sire line. SEA Seed El Melah, a 1986 stallion, was out of the mare SEA Basma, who is particularly interesting as both the tail female line of her sire and dam trace to Yosreia, through Mohga. In 1987, Ibn Adaweya sired Mahrous out of the Bilal daughter Mashallah. In 1988 and 1989, he sired full siblings, the grey mare SEA Set El Hosn and the grey stallion, SEA Zain out of the Mourad daughter, Yosra. In 1992, he sired SEA Bousat Al Reeh, out of SEA El Hedia, who has a Bukra tail female line. In 1994 and 1999, Ibn Adaweya sired full siblings out of the *Tuhotmos grand-daughter, Yosra. The Hafeed Anter grand-daughter, Hacebah (out of the Ikhnatoon daughter, Samarkand) produced the filly, Manayer El Mousa, by Ibn Adaweya. The chestnut mare is Alf Leila Wa Leila and the stallion is SEA Al Fateh, also a chestnut. For the Rabab stud, when bred to the gorgeous mare Kout el Koloob, Ibn Adaweya sired full siblings: the grey mare Wegdan RB, the grey mare Afrah and the grey stallion, Yakout Rabab.

*Bint Adaweya

*Bint Adaweya was sold by the EAO as a yearling to Donald Ford of Lancer Arabians in 1978 and was imported to the Lancer Farm in Reddick, Florida. Two years later, in October 1980, Donald Ford held a landmark sale, Lancer's Night of Nights, Sale of Sales, dispersing all of his Egyptian horses, including the stallion *Asadd+++, who sold for $1,525,000. The Fords earned six million dollars for all the horses, with the sale average approximately $200,000 per horse. *Bint Adaweya was sold to a group of people named Harper-Reich, out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for $84,000.

It gets a little difficult to track what happened to *Bint Adaweya, after she was sold by Lancer Arabians. Who exactly owned her and what were their plans for this young mare? In the May 1983 issue of Arabian Horse World, John Blincoe of American Farms advertised his stock list and *Bint Adaweya appears on this list, in foal to *Asadd+++. However, it does not appear that she ever produced a foal by *Asadd+++. Her 1981 foal, a colt by the stallion *Nagid also appears on this list. Eventually, this colt, named Amer Nagid, was gelded. 

*Bint Adaweya (Akhtal x Adaweya) as photographed by Todd Dearth 

In 1983, *Bint Adaweya was purchased by Bentwood Farm. I asked Lisa Lacy if she remembered *Bint Adaweya and she said, "Bint Adaweya was, in my opinion, a very correct mare. She was refined and pretty, but maintained much of the strength of body, or substance, that Antar gave to his daughters. I remember her having pretty foals by Moniet el Sharaf."

The cross with Moniet el Sharaf (*Ibn Moniet el Nefous x Bint Bint Moniet) enabled the family to establish itself in America, as *Bint Adaweya produced two daughters and a son: the bay mare Adasharaf, the black mare Tanye Rama and the bay stallion Talit Sharaf. Tanye Rama seems to have been the mare that everyone wanted and fought over. She was owned by Norm Sonju, the man who managed the Dallas Mavericks, then she was sold to Paolo Gucci and finally, she went to Vera Stoessel, who also owned Ansata Sinan. Tanye Rama appears to have been the most prolific producer for this family, having produced 4 stallions and 1 mare:

(1) G Rama Noir (Dal Noir) 1990 Black Stallion
(2) G Tantalise (AK Sirhalima) 1991 Chestnut Stallion
(3) Milhanger Ptolemy (AK Sirhalima) 1993 Black Stallion
(4) VA Tosca Bint Sinan (Ansata Sinan) 1998 Grey Mare
(5) VA Prince Amir (VA Farouk Ibn Sinan) 2002 Bay Stallion

In 1987, at the age of 10 years, *Bint Adaweya died and with her death, the opportunity to incorporate  a daughter from one of the most influential EAO families also died with her, *Bint Adaweya provides a very vivid lesson emphasizing the importance of preservation breeding and the fragility of a moment,  which if not seized, quickly passes and any chance to make a difference and establish alternate bloodline sources for future use evaporates, never to come again.

3 Generations - Alijamila

Alijamila (Ruminaja Ali x Ansata Justina)

When bred to Ruminaja Ali, Ansata Justina (*Jamil x Ansata Judea) produced the black mare, Alijamila, bred by Hank and Phyllis Browning and sold to Mr. Mohammed Bin Jassim Al Marzouk of the Ajmal Stud in Kuwait. Alijamila was ultra-elegant and she passed her beauty on to her sons and daughters like Al Baraki, Thee Atticus, Bint Bint Justina, Bint Alijamila, Ajmal Jumanah, Ajmal Jamila, Shabab Jamal and

Ajmal Ibtihaj (Adnan x Alijamila)

Ajmal Ibtihaj, her Adnan daughter, purchased by Ezzain Arabians, Kuwait. Like the esteemed Ezzain broodmares, Azhaar Ezzain, NK Yasmin, NK Momtaza and NK Nakeebya; Ajmal Ibtihaj is also a cherished broodmare for Ezzain and has produced a beautiful family of progeny which includes 2 sets of full siblings by different stallions: 
the NK Qaswarah-sired get, the stallion,  Mohhareb  Ezzain

Mohhareb Ezzain (NK Qaswarah x Ajmal Ibtihaj)

and also, Alttafilbari Ezzain,a beautiful black daughter so reminiscent of Alijamila. "Alttafilbari has a name that reflects her reason of existence, God's wonderful blessings is the meaning of her name," says her breeder, Usamah Alkazemi. Alttafilbari is a strong-bodied mare, powerfully built, with a deep heart girth, well sprung rib cage and a very strong hindquarter. She is built like a prize-winning racehorse and her sleek and athletic body conveys great power, speed and stamina.

Alttafilbari Ezzain (NK Qaswarah x Ajmal Ibtihaj)

plus Moneerah Ezzain and Qamar Ezzain, full sisters sired by the Ansata AlMurtajiz son, Nooreddine Ezzain

Moneerah Ezzain (Nooreddine Ezzain x Ajmal Ibtihaj)

In phenotype, these horses are representative of the progression of Usamah Alkazemi’s vision of his ideal Arabian horse, from one generation to the next.